Month: October 2021

Prompted Writings

/ Ken May / Leave a comment

What are Prompted Writings? See here

Prompt: That was his idea not mine

First draft:

“That was his idea, not mine,” Molly shouted.  Molly referred to her twin brother Mitchell.  Their older sister Emily who was on babysitter duty heard the commotion and came to investigate.  Upon entering the room, Emily found the two younger ones engaged in hot debate, and when she inquired as to what was going on, it prompted Molly’s declaration.
“What idea?  What are you talking about?”  Emily asked.
“Nuh-uh!!”  Mitchell protested.  “It was not!  And she was the one who flipped the latch on the cage.”  Emily glanced at Pippen’s cage in the corner.  Pippen was their twenty-five year old Macaw.  Their parents had gotten Pippen early in their marriage— long before they had any of the kids.  And since Macaws live to an average age of seventy-five, he was still relatively a youngster.  Upon Emily’s inspection, the cage door was indeed open.  But Pippen was nowhere in sight.
“So who opened the cage door?”  Emily’s voice was a mixture of calm investigator and annoyed older sister.
“She did!  She did!” Blurted Mitchell.
“But I’m not the one who opened the window,” Molly shouted.  Emily snapped her attention to the window that hung open.  She briskly walked to the window to inspect it.
“This window?  You opened this widow after Pippen got out of his cage?”  The panic in her voice was rising.
“Pippen said he wanted it open,” Mitchell defended his action.  And his voice warbled as he said it.  Emily snapped her attention back over to Molly.  Her eyes were welling up now and tears spilled down her cheeks.
“We called and called to him, but he didn’t come back,” Molly said between sobs.   
Dad had been working on the screens so they had been taken down.  There was nothing separating Pippen from the wild blue yonder, and he exploited his advantage and was somewhere in the neighborhood probably right now trying to talk to a very unsuspecting pigeon.

First revision:

“That was his idea, not mine,” Molly shouted referring to her twin brother Mitchell.  She was responding to their older sister Emily who was heard the commotion and came to investigate. 
“What idea?  What are you talking about?”  Emily asked.
“Nuh-uh!!”  Mitchell protested.  “It was not!  And she was the one who opened the cage.”  Emily glanced at Pippen’s cage in the corner.  Pippen was their twenty-five year old Macaw.  Their parents had gotten Pippen early in their marriage— long before they had any of the kids.  And since Macaws live to an average age of seventy-five, he was still relatively a youngster.  The door was indeed open.  But Pippen was nowhere in sight.
“So who opened the cage door?”  Emily’s voice was a mixture of calm investigator and annoyed older sister.
“She did!  She did!” Blurted Mitchell.
“But I’m not the one who opened the window,” Molly shouted. 
“This window?”  Panic welled in Emily’s voice.  “You opened this window after Pippen got out of his cage?”
“Pippen said he wanted it open,” Mitchell defended his action.  And his voice warbled as he said it.  Emily snapped her attention back over to Molly.  Her eyes were welling up now and tears spilled down her cheeks.
“We called and called to him, but he didn’t come back,” Molly said between sobs.   
Dad had been working on the screens so they had been taken down.  There was nothing separating Pippen from the wild blue yonder, and he exploited his advantage and was somewhere in the neighborhood probably right now trying to talk to a very unsuspecting pigeon.

Be the Plant

/ Ken May / Leave a comment

One Spring when we lived in Spring Lake, NC, I bought some flowers for our front porch. Not being much of a horticulturist, I didn’t take into account the amount of sun the plant was suited for and I got something that was fairly low light even though our porch had direct sunlight for probably close to eight hours. Needless to say, the plant died a quick and scorching death. I threw the pot behind the shrubs thinking I would take care of it later. (Don’t judge me. You know you do it, too.) Fast forward to September of that same year. I was trimming the hedges and I discovered this.

What was thought to have died sprouted new life. Remember that this is what God does with us. When we are dead in our sins, he gives new life. When we encounter hardship to the point that we despair even of life (2 Cor. 1:8-9), he gives new life and brings good out of anything (Rom. 8:28-29). What’s the lesson? Whatever you are going through right now, be the plant.

Dealing with Questions About Faith ~ Leap of Faith Required

/ Ken May / Leave a comment

John 20:19-31

Jesus acknowledges the leap of faith we must take to profess belief in him.  He is leading the disciples to a declaration of belief.  Put yourself in their shoes.  Can you imagine them feeling like this:  “Lord, you convinced us that you are the Messiah.  We believed all you taught us.  But now you’re dead and we are in danger of being rounded up.  Lord, we are scared and confused.”  Remember, their world had crumbled around them.

Jesus doesn’t rebuke or condemn Thomas or the others for needing to see the proof of his wounds.  He reassures them.  He shows them his wounds and then says “Peace.”  When Jesus does this, Thomas declares: “My Lord and my God.”  Thomas was saying more than just that he believed now that Jesus had come back from the dead.  He professed his belief in Jesus as God himself.  This declaration is the denouement— the resolution of the plot.  It is the place to which Jesus leads all of the disciples.  Including you and me.

To follow Jesus is to make this declaration.  You are saying the following: I believe you eternally exist, I believe you were born of a virgin, I believe you died but came back to life three days later, and I believe you sit now at the right hand of God, and I believe you are bringing about your purpose in the world.  It takes no less of a leap of faith now as it did then.  And when you have to navigate the rugged terrain of that road of belief, Jesus knows and understands the leap of faith you must make.  And he is there to help you along that road of belief.

Perspective in Myrtle Beach

/ Ken May / Leave a comment

Perspective often determines your level of enjoyment.  I could sit at a five star hotel with wait-staff responding to my every whim.  But if I focus on what I don’t have rather than what I do, I could be miserable.  For example: they put me next to the elevator, I didn’t get the room I requested, they were out of prime rib at the restaurant.  Or I could stay at a mid-range hotel with no amenities and have the time of my life.  What’s the difference?  Perspective.

We love coming to Myrtle Beach, SC.  And we love going in the off season.  It is 8 October as I sit on the fourth floor balcony and write this.  It is hurricane season so it is overcast.  It is not the prime season, but we are as happy as can be.  There are no crowds to deal with.  We got the room at a discounted rate because of the time of year.  And we can sit on the balcony and enjoy the majestic ocean.

I think our challenge is to find this kind of perspective in other areas of life.  Maybe I didn’t get the job I wanted, but what advantages do I have in my present job?  Maybe one of my relationships isn’t going that great, but what am I learning?  Maybe I am not making desired progress toward some of my goals, but how am I growing?  Perspective.  Whether it pertains to your beach hotel or an area of your life, it can be the key to contentment.

And as you can see in the last two pictures, it turned out pretty spectacular anyway.

Dealing with Questions About Faith ~ Jesus provides encouragement for belief

/ Ken May / Leave a comment

John 20:19-31

Jesus provides encouragement for belief.  Three times in this passage (John 20:19-31) he approaches the disciples saying “Peace.”   He also offers proof of his wounds both to the large group and later, individually to Thomas.  He doesn’t stand back and watch them flounder.  He doesn’t even make them come to him.  He proactively seeks them to bolster their faith.  He does more than just understand and accept their struggles.  He initiates encouragement.

Jesus still encourages his followers today.  He moves and works when his people come together corporately (worship services, church).  He actively calls people to go into vocational ministry to lead his body of believers.  He works through authors like Lee Strobel with The Case for Christ and Josh McDowell with Evidence that Demands a Verdict.  And many, many others.  He doesn’t expect you to flail on your own.  He anticipates the struggles you will have on the road of belief, and he still initiates encouragement today.  If you have trouble seeing how he initiates encouragement for your struggles with questions, ask him for wisdom so that you can see where he is active in your life.

Prompted Writings

/ Ken May / Leave a comment

What are Prompted Writings? See here

Prompt: with great joy, I share with you what happened after…

(First Draft)

With great joy, I share with you what happened after I opened the letter.  Well, first, I suppose I should tell you about the letter.  I received a letter in the mail today.  The plain, white, letter sized envelope didn’t look out of the ordinary.  The edges were a bit worn from the processing and handling, but other than that it was ordinary.  But when I opened it, I saw nothing inside.  I pulled the flap back and opened the mouth of it wide to see if perhaps a small piece of paper stuck to the inside.  I turned it upside down.  I tore the envelope open to see if anything was written on the inside.  Nothing.  Strange.

That’s when I looked at the front again, and noticed the return address.  It was from Steven Elrod.  That went all the way back to grade school.  Sixth grade to be exact.  Half way through the year, a new student moved into our class.  It was a small school and an even smaller class.  So a new student was not common.  But then he also left as mysteriously as he came a few weeks later.  Ask me now why I even remember him and I couldn’t.  I had maybe a handful of conversations with him, never did anything with him outside of class, and I certainly hadn’t kept up with him in the last forty years.  So why was I now getting a letter from him— or more precisely, an envelope.  Then I noticed the return address.  China? 

(First Revision)

Opening that letter ignited a chain of events that still has my head swimming.  Well, first, I suppose I should tell you about the letter.  I received a letter today.  The envelope didn’t look out of the ordinary.  The edges were a bit worn from the processing and handling but nothing other than that.  The strange thing— it was empty.  I felt inside.  Nothing.  I turned it upside down.  Nothing. I tore it completely open and smoothed it flat on the desk to see if anything was written on the inside.  Nothing.  Strange.

That’s when I looked at the front again and noticed the return address.  It was from Steven Elrod.  That time-morphed me all the way back to grade school.  Sixth grade to be exact.  Half way through the year, a new student appeared in class.  It was a small school and an even smaller class.  So a new student was not common.  And then, a few weeks later, he left as mysteriously as he came.  Ask me now why I even remember him and I couldn’t tell you.  I had maybe a handful of conversations with him, never did anything with him outside of class, and I certainly hadn’t kept up with him in the last forty years.  So why was I now getting a letter from him— or more precisely, an envelope.  Then I noticed the return address.  China? 

Dealing with Questions About Faith ~ Jesus meets you where you are (part 2)

/ Ken May / Leave a comment

John 20:19-31

A few days later on that same ski trip [Dealing with Questions about Faith ~ Intro], I had another experience.  I went on a trail.  There are the main trails going down the mountain, but many small paths wind through the trees off of these.  They will go for a few yards before exiting back onto the main trail.  Well, I had my lessons and had two full days on skis.  I decided that I was ready to go off-trail.  

I zipped up the little path and navigated everything pretty well until I got to the end and someone had built a little jump into the path.  Looking back, it was really a very small jump, but with only about twelve hours of skiing prowess under my belt, it was a little much for me to handle.  My feet went straight up in the air.  I came down, bottom first landing in bank of soft snow (thank goodness).  But I was folded in half with my feet and my arms sticking straight up in the air above my head.  I was stuck.

My brother, who was a more experienced skier than I, saw me and followed me.  He was able to pull me out and get me going again.  After I was safely on the main slope, I said to my brother “I am so lucky that you decided to take that trail, too.”  Rolling his eyes he replied, “I saw you go up there and figured you would get yourself in trouble.” 

Because he took my lack of experience into account, he was there to get me back on the right path again.  And in a very similar way, Jesus knows that we lack the experience for the challenges of life and faith that come our way.  So he comes to where we are so he can get us on the road of belief again.